KOLKATA/NEW DELHI, 22 November 2007 — The Indian Army was called out to quell violent protests in the eastern city of Kolkata yesterday as new trouble broke out in a political row over the killing of villagers opposed to surrendering land for industry. The violence in Kolkata disrupted the national Parliament in New Delhi as angry lawmakers shouted their communist counterparts down in the upper house of Parliament, leading to chaos and forcing the chamber to be adjourned for the day. The trouble coincided with a debate on violence in Nandigram in the lower house. “The ruling left front has failed to protect the people of Nandigram, the people are terrorized by the left parties,” the Hindu nationalist opposition leader L.K. Advani said, referring to the government of West Bengal. “We are witnessing the end of communist-rule world over and Nandigram will be a turning point in the politics of West Bengal.” Stressing the need for an all-party delegation to be sent to Nandigram, Advani said: “Be it Godhra, Ayodhya or Nandigram,” this is needed. “We couldn’t go earlier, now an all-party delegation should be sent to Nandigram,” he said. Soldiers armed with automatic rifles patrolled the heart of the usually bustling city after protesters hurled stones, shattered windshields of cars and buses, burned some vehicles and blocked traffic. It was the first time in years the army was ordered to bring peace to a major city, in what some analysts said was a major embarrassment to the state’s communist rulers who have been accused of not stopping violence by their cadres. The trouble began after a protest march called by the All India Minority Forum turned violent as hundreds of demonstrators hurled stones and bottles at riot police in the narrow streets of downtown Kolkata. Riot police retaliated by firing tear gas at the protesters and cordoned off the area to prevent the trouble from spreading, witnesses said. “People were allowed to move in the streets with their hands on their heads. Many have been held up in offices,” Swati Ghosh, who works in the area, told Reuters by phone. “We hope the situation improves by evening.” Parents said schools had been closed and children had been held back until peace returned to the streets. “Traffic has come to a standstill because of the chaotic situation,” said Zulfikar Alam, a local resident. Police said at least 30 vehicles had been damaged, some of them set on fire, and several protesters and policemen injured. “We are trying to bring things under control, there seems to be trouble everywhere,” said Jawed Shamim, a top city police officer. West Bengal, of which Kolkata is the capital, has been roiled by weeks of protests against the killing of villagers in Nandigram by suspected communist cadres in a turf battle that began earlier this year. West Bengal’s ruling communists, who are allies of India’s federal coalition government, lost control of Nandigram earlier this year after trying, unsuccessfully, to get villagers to vacate their land to make way for a chemicals complex. Local opposition parties and Maoist rebels moved in, and the area became a no-go zone for communists and police alike.
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